Guinn, Dominguez also eager to make some noise for the Lady Tigers

It was 2005: Clint Eastwood's Million Dollar Baby took home Best Picture for the previous year, the Chicago White Sox swept the World Series, Tiger Woods donned his fourth Green Jacket and the Alamogordo boys tennis team qualified for the state tournament.

Eastwood, the White Sox and Woods haven't repeated any of those feats since then, but with a 5-4 victory over Gadsden on Tuesday, the Tiger boys have: For the first time in eight years, Alamogordo is heading to state.

"It feels great -- there's no other way to put it," Head Coach Carl Jones said. "There's a core of junior boys that's been together since the eighth grade, and I told them when they were in the eighth grade that they were going to be the future of our tennis program. And to see that core get to state this year really makes it great."

Jones also praised the work of his seniors, most specifically two-time individual state qualifier and No. 1 singles player Matty Geary.

"Of course, seeing my seniors get there too is a blessing as well because Matty Geary has been a major part of our program since his eighth grade year," Jones said. "To see him get there for team state is a big accomplishment for him because he's gotten there for individuals, but he's never gotten to go up there with his peers."

The Tigers (7-2, 3-1) broke the postseason drought thanks to a combination of talent, focus and depth over the course of a battle-tested season.

"We have a (boys) team where we can go eight deep and still compete with just about everybody," Jones said.

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But the Tigers aren't merely content with just qualifying as a team. At the district tournament on Saturday in Las Cruces, Alamogordo will be out to nab a handful of individual bids as well.

All three boys doubles teams, lead by the No. 1 duo of Geary and junior Ben Dodson, figure to be in contention to secure a top three finish which would mean an automatic qualification to state.

As Dodson explains, the boys making state as a team is evidence that when it comes to individual qualification this weekend, anything is possible for the Tigers.

"I think it's great because it shows to never give up -- no matter how many years pass that we don't make state, there's still a chance," Dodson said.

For the Lady Tigers (4-5, 1-3), the senior doubles tandem of Taylor Guinn and Lisette Dominguez are favorites to represent Alamogordo at state. The pair finished the regular season with a 7-2 mark and is driven to earn a spot in Albuquerque on May 8 and 9 to put a golden finish on their Tiger athletic career.

"No matter what, we know what's at stake," Dominguez said. "We know that we're seniors and that we're both very competitive, so I think that will definitely give us an edge because we want it a lot. I think our talent can back that up, too."

With a playing style that Jones describes as "sheer tenacity," Guinn and Dominguez, who are close friends outside tennis and have been doubles partners for three years, are going to be tough to beat on Saturday.

"As soon as we get out on the court, even if other factors are going on, no matter what our chemistry is always dead on," Dominguez said.

The duo also epitomizes the attitude of the Tiger tennis team as a whole in that they know how to have fun, but they also know how to get down to business, too.

"We've had that balance of knowing when to turn (the intensity) on and when to turn it off," Dominguez explained, "and how to have fun but also how to be supportive and tell each other, you know, 'You need to do this better.'"

Alamogordo will use these next few days of practice to work on conditioning as well as mental preparation, especially when it comes to facing less talented opponents.

"Right now, we're trying to get more fit because there's a lot of people (in the state) that are a lot more athletic than we are," Dodson said. "The only thing I think we should work on is that we usually play down when we go against players that are a little bit weaker than we are."

But as Jones emphasized, the base that Alamogordo has built over the course of the season isn't going to crumble or drastically expand before Saturday.

"We're just going over the simple stuff and trying to keep them focused," he said. "Nothing's going to change in two days -- if we don't have it by now, I don't think we're going to get it in two days."

Jones feels confident about where his team's at heading into the final stretch of the season, and he's anxious for the Tigers to continue to prove any and all doubters wrong.

"I'm ready to shock the world," Jones said. "I'm ready to shock the state of New Mexico."

Saturday's district play begins at 8 a.m. at Lions Park.Contact Kyle Newman at knewman@alamogordonews.com and follow him on Twitter @KG_Newms